Breaking Habit
by wildface97
Summary: In which Mikasa needs to break out of her bad habit. Slight fluff (?) & slight crack.


_Breaking Habit_

_Summary: In which Mikasa needs to break out of her bad habit. Slight fluff (?) & slight crack._

_AN: I feel like Mikasa is very OCD about Eren and sometimes goes a little over the top to protect him. I wanted to explore this concept. I tried to go for a serious story but it may come off a little silly towards the end._

* * *

It was dark by the time the carriage arrived back to Eren's home town. Shiganshina was a new place for Mikasa; she had been to very few places in her life, mostly remaining at home with her mother helping with chores and tending to their crops. On few occasions her father took her to the shops some distance away from their land, but that was all.

_But they were gone now_, her mind informed her coldly. _She could never do those again_.

Strangely enough, she felt indifferent to the idea. Which was very wrong; she knew she should be crying and sobbing and traumatised, yet the feeling wasn't reaching her. It was as if her mind had erected a duplicate Maria Wall to surround her mind. Keeping her safe from her emotions.

Oddly enough that didn't bother her either.

During the trip, she had used her free hand to play with the ends of the scarf the young boy had given her – Eren, she believed he was called. He hadn't put it on in the best way, so she had been tugging at the fabric, albeit gently in order not to ruin the woven texture, in order to make it slightly more comfortable to wear. Now it was wrapped loosely around her neck, the end hovering over her mouth and nose, allowing her to breathe yet keep her face warm.

Her other hand had been gripped by Eren for the remainder of the trip. At first it was a stubborn grip; his hands were roughly latched onto her fingers and wouldn't allow her to bend them. She didn't complain, of course, because that boy had just saved her life _and_ lent her his scarf. She had no right to complain.

However during the long hours of the trip his hand had unconsciously begun to release its grip until his hand was merely in contact with hers. She could see his head tilting as if he was about to fall asleep, and for a brief second the contact was gone, and suddenly Mikasa felt very wrong and gripped his hand before it fell completely. Eren had fallen asleep, and didn't seem to mind that she now boldly held his hand, so she settled for caressing it in her lap.

Doctor Jaeger had been glancing at the children throughout the entire trip, and although Mikasa knew she should've trusted him more, she much preferred to lean against her new favoured person.

The carriage slowed as it passed through the cramped roads of the city; Mikasa looked around at the towering homes and how there was no more fields or nature, and wondered how people could stand living in such tight spaces. It was very late, so everything was shrouded in darkness and all that was visible was the silhouette of the many houses and giant wall. A few candles flickered from the inside of a few windows, but that was the only light. There were no stars out tonight.

Mikasa looked down to the hand that wasn't hers in her lap. She rubbed his thumb, stroking the palm of his hand and watching his fingers twitch. He wasn't hers, she reasoned to herself, this wasn't her hand, and it didn't belong to her. Her eyebrows lowered to a sad frown at the thought of letting it go though. She didn't want to lose this hand she held. She wanted it, she wanted the boy it belonged to.

Her gaze followed the length of his arm until she was staring up at his sleeping face. She wanted this boy – Eren Jaeger, and she wanted him to be her family. It seemed childish to want to possess something so badly, but she was a child and she was missing a family.

She wanted her parents; her _real_ family, but her mind reminded her that they were dead and they could not come back ever. Her consciousness wanted something to replace her parents, and she wanted Eren to fill in that spot.

Not as her parent though, that'd be strange. But she wanted to care for him, so in return he would care for her. _Maybe this was what siblings felt_, she wondered. She had been an only child, and was unaccustomed to the relationship between them. Maybe this was the link she needed.

She placed her hand into his, and gave it a gentle shake, as if signing a contract to the boy despite him not being awake. She had saved him from getting strangled, and he had saved her from being kidnapped. They would protect each other from now on, and she would always be there for him.

The horses pulling the carriage whinnied in protest at being pulled to a halt, snapping Mikasa out of her thoughts. She looked up, curious, to see the dark silhouette of a house that looked exactly the same as every other one around them. Doctor Jaeger thanked the driver, handing him what Mikasa could only assume was money, before he jumped off the back of the cart with a groan, and turned around to face them.

"Come on then, Miss Ackerman," he smiled, stretching out his arms towards her, "Let's get you home."

She looked down at the hand in her lap, biting her lip, before hesitantly letting go. The cold reached her palm instantly and she gripped her sleeves in an attempt to replace the warmth, before allowing the doctor to put his hands under her arms and hoisting her off of the cart and next to his feet, before he turned back and lifted Eren. Eren was still fast asleep, so he was kept in the man's arms. The doctor made a tsk sound, before looking over to Mikasa and muttering a friendly, "I swear, this boy could sleep through an earthquake if he wanted to."

He balanced Eren between his shoulder and arm, freeing the other one for Mikasa to hold. She gripped it tentatively, noticing how his rough hands matched her fathers, yet made no comment.

Doctor Jaeger could never replace her father, she reasoned. She no longer had the desire for a replacement anyway, now that Eren had taken that spot. She was old enough to look after herself, she reasoned, she merely needed the company of a family that was not in charge of her. An _equal_; a sibling.

_Like Eren_.

She climbed the steps of the home, releasing the doctor's hand so he could open the door, before gripping it once more and leading her inside. A woman was in the kitchen sat by the table with her hands fisted together muttering under her breath, before she jumped up and let out a released sigh.

"Thank Maria," she sighed, her side glowing from the nearby candle light, "I thought something bad had happened! You were gone for so long, my dears, I-"

She then noticed Mikasa. Mikasa stared at the ground, not allowing the chance for her to associate this woman as a replacement mother.

"My, who's this then?" she asked, her tone friendly yet wary.

"This is Mikasa, the young lady we had gone to visit. I'm afraid there was an… _Incident_. She'll be staying with us for a little while."

_They were probably doing the strange adult thing where they spoke through their eyes_, Mikasa thought, due to not hearing any words being said but not daring to look up at them anyway. Her parents used to do it when they wanted to discuss something they didn't want her to hear. It was strange how adults could talk like that in secret; she hoped her sibling bond with Eren would come with similar results. _An unbreakable bond_, yes, Mikasa liked the idea of it.

"Of course!" the mother said; they must have finished their telepathy conversation.

"I'm afraid we don't have any spare rooms or beds," Mikasa realised she was being spoken to and shyly looked towards the woman, "but we have some spare sheets that we could lay down by the fire, if that's alright with you. We'll build you a bed as soon as we can."

Mikasa couldn't argue with that; she wasn't exactly planned, so it was understandable they weren't prepared. She gave a light nod of approval. The woman smiled at her, before rolling her eyes when she noticed Eren out like a light.

"Oh dear," she sighed, scooping her son up, "I better put him to bed. Grisha, go fetch the covers for Mikasa; she must be tired."

They both left the room, and Mikasa was stood by herself in the candle light, feeling very alone. She didn't want to be alone; she had just decided that she'd always have Eren beside her, right? Now he had been taken away, and she didn't like it. Yet, she fought against her instinct to pursue and held her ground.

She was a guest; she had no right to intrude. Her feet trembled in place, refusing to move. She didn't even know where Eren's room was, it wasn't like she was allowed to intrude on his privacy anyways.

Doctor Jaeger came back in, his arms full with several blankets and a pillow. He set it down on the ground by the fireplace, groaning as he lowered down. She guessed he had a back problem, as he slowly rose once more and sighed, "I hope this is alright Miss Ackerman. If you're unhappy with this I can let you sleep in my bed with my wife; I could camp here for a little while."

He was offering to sleep on the floor despite having back trouble? _What a stupid man he was_, she thought, he was only going to cause himself more discomfort. She replied with a monotone, "I'm perfectly comfortable with sleeping here, sir. Thank you for your hospitality."

Mikasa gave a curt nod, to which the doctor rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment, as he muttered, "This politeness isn't necessary you know. You're family now; just be yourself."

_My old self was lost today_, her mind countered. But what left her lips was, "Yes sir."

He finished laying out the covers, one on top of the other, so she could be sandwiched in between and kept warm.

"Would you like to borrow one of my wife's shirts to use as a nightgown, or are you comfortable wearing your clothes? We'll have to make you some clothes tomorrow."

She still wore Eren's scarf, and seeing as he was asleep and therefore she didn't need to return the scarf until he woke, she requested to stay in her clothes. He left her at that and bid her a good night.

Tucked into her make-shift bed, Mikasa stared at the ceiling, still lost in her thoughts. Everything changed today. She was a new person, and this was her new life. Rolling to her side, her fingers reached for the end of his scarf and fiddled with it around her face. _His_ scarf. _Eren_.

She couldn't stop thinking about him, her mind already planning a future that Eren had no consent with. She imagined them being best friends, always by each other's side and protecting each other. Always there for each other, to talk and say how they feel, a perfect bond in which both relied on each other in the cruel world they lived in. They would both survive, and both win, and both be happy.

Yet, they weren't even together. Her eye twitched; they weren't even in the same _room_, how were they supposed to be with each other helping protect each other if they weren't even in viewing contact?

She sat up immediately, and decided she had to check on him. Make sure he was alright. What if he was in danger? If the kidnapper had contacts and they came to get revenge for him killing two of their men? What if they had snuck into his window and were currently choking him?

She was quiet but swift as she leapt up and charged down the hall. Her feet were silent on the wooden floor and she was grateful, wondering which of the doors led to Eren's room. She peered into the first room, and shut it as soon as she noticed there was a big bed with two adults slumbering inside. The next door was small and thin, which must have been the cupboard, so she skipped it without opening. The second to last door was Eren's room, which made her presume the last probably lead to the bathroom.

Inside, Eren slept soundly from his bed, peaceful as he was on the cart and in his parent's arms. There was no kidnappers in sight.

She gave a small sigh of relief, then noticed that his window was slightly ajar. That of course would not do, as it was a risk and was allowing any weirdo the opportunity to sneak in and attack Eren if they deemed. She walked over to it and slid it shut.

There, crisis averted.

Facing Eren once more, Mikasa quietly made her way to his bedside, watching his body rise and fall from under the sheets. And then, she realised, that she couldn't leave him. What if he stopped breathing? She'd be out in the main room, not noticing as her new family suffocated himself in his room. She pondered about bringing her covers into his room and camping out on his floor, when he stirred and her eyes were glued to his face.

He squirmed, looking uncomfortable, before his eyes groggily opened and he peered around his room in a daze. He screeched when he saw her standing motionless by his side.

"M-Mikasa!?" he shouted/whispered, peering at her through half-asleep eyes. He gave a yawn and rubbed an eye, "Are you okay?"

Not sure how to answer, she looked around his room, before fiddling with his scarf. She had woken him up, she was a very bad friend. Her eyebrows knitted together in guilt.

Eren took this reaction differently, as he concernedly asked, "Can you not sleep? It must be scary being in a new place. Here-" he lifted the corner of his quilt and scooted along to make room, "Hop in."

Her eyebrows shot straight up in surprise, and it dawned on her that accepting this offer would let her be able to watch over him, to protect him while he dreamed and to stay with him. It was a perfect moment of opportunity!

Without voicing her excitement, she slithered into the corner of the bed, leaning on her side so they were both face to face. He smiled, before covering his mouth to yawn, and grinned, "G'night!" before shutting his eyes again.

His bed was much warmer, she decided, watching his face slowly begin to relax. Then she realised something; she still had his scarf.

She frowned; she was sharing his bed, _and_ using his scarf. She needed to return it, despite not wanting to let it go. She gently gave his nose a tap with her finger, and his eyes squinted open once more.

"Hm?" he asked, half asleep. Her face was buried in his scarf, and she let out a faint, "_Do you want your scarf back now_?"

He scrunched his nose as if decoding what she asked, before he shrugged and yawned a, "Eh, keep it," before rolling over and facing the other way. Mikasa was glad the scarf had swallowed her face, because she couldn't hold back the massive smile upon her face.

* * *

The Jaeger family had accepted Mikasa with open arms, but none of them could deny the girl's… _Quirks_.

She never seemed to have an opinion on anything, unless it was criticising Eren's poor thinking skills when it came to handling the bullies outside. She ate any food without complaint, had no desires, and always stood by Eren's side.

Grisha and Kalura found it cute; Eren did not.

There were many days when Eren would whine that Mikasa followed him everywhere, and wouldn't leave him be, although he usually only complained when she called him out on his blunt decisions. Aside from that, he didn't mind her company in the slightest and was usually the one to grab her hand and tug her around, showing her all the places he liked to go to and where everything was in the city.

Mikasa adapted quickly; if she ever had nightmares or traumatic experiences about her past, she certainly never showed it, and she had a horrible habit of sneaking into Eren's bed at night. Grisha even made her a bed, yet she still ended up sharing with Eren. They decided to give up and let her.

Her overprotective habit was endearing, yet, it caused a lot of issues.

Like this.

* * *

Eren was sat cross-legged on his new bed in the dormitory where he and four others were sleeping now that they had enrolled into the Training Squad. He admitted it wasn't the best place to train; the training grounds were nothing but a landfill that was being used as a farm, and although they would have lessons about Titans, they also had to assist with the farming chores.

_Well, no use complaining_, he stretched out on his bed, buzzing with excitement. He couldn't wait; killing titans finally after all of those pathetic years of humans being nothing but bait. He was going to crush every one of them with his bare hands, he grinned at the fist he made in front of his face.

Oh yes, this would be it. He wasn't going to let humanity down. He would fight, and he would win, just like he did every day of his life. He beat the bullies, he beat the kidnappers and the murderers; he could do this!

Now he had to make sure he just didn't screw up. First impressions were everything.

On the bunk above him lay Armin, lightly dozing after a long first day. Their teacher had been strict, and terrifying, and was sure to bully Armin, but he handled it well considering it was Armin and for that, Eren was proud of his friend.

He looked over to the other two on the opposite side of the room; he was unfamiliar with them, but they had not been asked questions either like him. He wondered why some of them hadn't been questioned, but it didn't bother him to be all fair.

The candle in the middle of the room was on its last drop of fuel, and by the time it went out, Eren had already drifted off to sleep.

He woke up to hear loud steps herding through the hallway. His dorm door shot open, and three staff were barging inside with lanterns guiding their way.

"_Whoa_- what's going on!?" he blurted out, his roommates also waking up in a panic.

"There's been a break in!" the staff hollered loudly, "Someone stole one of our training swords and we pursued the perpetrator into here."

Eren looked at Armin and his roommates in confusion, and they looked back in the same expression.

There was a tense moment of silence when a new voice joined in, "Are you okay Eren?"

Everyone jumped and Eren slowly peered around to see Mikasa buried in his quilt beside him.

"_EH!? MIKASA_!?" he screeched, the other members in the room jumping in surprise, "W-what are you doing in here!? And in _my bed_ at that? This is the _boy's dorm_!"

She had a serious expression on her face as she replied, "I was worried for your safety."

"We are not in battle yet Mikasa! And I can handle myself just fine! You don't need to _babysit_ me!"

He then noticed she was hugging a sharp blade in between him and herself, so he pointed a finger and screeched, "_You stole equipment too_!? Mikasa what is wrong with you?"

"I had to come prepared in case there was an attack," was her modest reply. Her face was so intent and serious it was hard to take literally.

"You there, Ackerman," one of the staff pointed to her, and she politely faced them, "You'll be punished for theft and entering a zone not permitted. Come with us – Jaeger, you too!"

"_EHH_? Why me? I had nothing to do with this!"

"She was found in your bed. We will not tolerate such behaviours in the training camp. Come with us."

After lots of squabbling and whining, both were to run laps around the camp until they dropped dead.

Armin watched them through the dorm window with a sigh, "Those two really have it bad."

The other roommates, whom Armin had yet to meet, spoke up, "How strange. I don't get those two at all."

"Yeah," the other hummed, "I can't even tell their relationship. Is she his _girlfriend_-"

"-or his _bodyguard_?" the other finished.

Armin sighed once more. He couldn't say he understood it either.

* * *

_AN: It slightly turned into crack, I apologise._


End file.
